Coal can be efficiently converted into hydrocarbons of a more useful gaseous or liquid form by coal gasification or liquefaction techniques, utilizing energy from a high-temperature, gas-cooled nuclear reactor for the endothermic and/or electrolytic processing required, as taught by Jones, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,158,673. While the United States, the Soviet Union, and China still contain major deposits of coal, this mineral is considered precious in most other parts of the world, where deposits are either lacking or have been largely used up.
Thus, while the earth's supply of precious fossil fuels is being steadily depleted to provide electricity and petrochemicals, a virtually unlimited world-wide supply of other carbon bearing minerals remains untapped as an energy source. Salotti, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,558,724, taught that inorganic crystalline carbonates could provide gaseous products containing up to 4% methane, if the carbonates were first heated in an oxygen-free atmosphere at from about 400.degree. C. to 700.degree. C., and then contacted with excess hydrogen gas at from about 200 psi. to 10,000 psi. This process, however, uses large quantities of valuable hydrogen gas, which is becoming increasingly important itself as an energy source. In addition, this process provides a poor yield of methane, leaves carbon residue and maintains explosive reaction conditions.
What is needed is a method to produce high carbon chain hydrocarbons without using valuable fuels such as coal or hydrogen.